


Our Differing Tastes Can't Stop Our Friendship

by browneyedgenius



Series: Fluff Bingo 2020 [5]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Can be read as Phil Coulson/Melinda May, F/M, Ficlet, Fluff Bingo 2020, Gen, Melinda hates coffee, Soulmate AU, but Phil loves it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:26:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27753040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/browneyedgenius/pseuds/browneyedgenius
Summary: Melinda May has always been annoyed at her soulmate's addiction to coffee, and how the taste would be mirrored on her tongue. Her chance to get some sweet revenge comes when she meets Phil Coulson at SHIELD Academy.
Relationships: Phil Coulson & Melinda May
Series: Fluff Bingo 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1995637
Comments: 12
Kudos: 23
Collections: Agents of Fluff 2020





	Our Differing Tastes Can't Stop Our Friendship

**Author's Note:**

> Durian: An oval spiny tropical fruit containing a creamy pulp. Despite its fetid smell, it is highly esteemed for its flavor.

Melinda didn’t like coffee. In fact, she hated it with a burning passion, which was why she was currently mad at the universe for sticking her with a soulmate who loved it so much. 

She could feel the bitter taste in her mouth as she scribbled down answers on her final exam, the nuance of each repellant flavour distracting her. She knew  _ why _ she could taste the coffee, of course, her mother had explained that whatever her soulmate was currently eating or drinking would be reflected onto her taste buds, but that didn’t mean she had to  _ enjoy _ it. 

She resolved that when she met her soulmate, she’d be sure to give them a piece of her mind. Unfortunately, she didn’t get that chance until years later. 

<>

The first time Melinda met Phil Coulson, she didn’t feel any sort of sudden revelation storybooks usually depicted in soulmate meetings. She noticed him as much as she’d typically notice a young adult with bright blue eyes and a passion for Captain America, nothing more and nothing less. He was friendly, and funny, and they became fast friends, but Melinda didn’t even consider that they could be soulmates until their first mission. 

As stray bullets flew past her, just narrowly avoiding her long hair, and as Phil told her to  _ run this way, Melinda _ , she realized that she trusted this man implicitly in a way she’d only ever trusted her parents. In fact, now that she considered it, it seemed like they were almost connected sometimes, two halves of a whole. She stood, gaping like a fish, and would’ve gotten shot if it wasn’t for Phil pulling her out of the way. 

After that nearly disastrous mission, Melinda started paying more attention to what Phil was drinking and eating. More than once, she invited him to have lunch with her, only to pay more attention to the food in front of him and the flavours in her mouth than actual conversation. But that didn’t work, since all academy cafeteria food was the same, and there weren’t really any other restaurants nearby. 

So Melinda went to plan B. She called her mom.

A few weeks and a mysterious package later, she came to class prepared. She’d remembered Phil mentioning once how he didn’t like the taste of durian, so she’d hidden a bag of durian crisps in her backpack. Watching Phil’s expression closely, she brought a piece to her mouth. 

Crunch.

Phil's face scrunched up adorably, and Melinda couldn’t help the evil grin that appeared on her face. 

Another crunch, and Phil was reaching for his water bottle. 

A final crunch and Phil was trying and failing not to gag. Now, Melinda knew the moment she found her soulmate should be something cherished, something magical, but all she could do was burst out in tears of laughter. After so many years of enduring the taste of coffee, she could finally, finally see her soulmate’s face grimacing at the debatable flavour of her favourite fruit. 

“Cadet May, is there something you’d like to share with us?” Her professor’s voice jolted her out of the moment, and she grinned. 

“Nothing, ma’am,” she replied boldly, catching Phil’s dumbfounded, slack-jawed moment of realization out of the corner of her eye. Oh, how she wished she had a camera right now.

Oh well, her memory would have to suffice. And she knew she’d never forget Phil’s expression anyway. It was priceless, totally worth the professor’s death glare. 

And, as she came to find, all those years gagging from the bitter taste of coffee? It was entirely worth it for a soulmate like Phil. 

**Author's Note:**

> So..... thoughts on durian? Is there anyone here who loves it, or hates it, or has never tried it before?


End file.
